Connellsville council, redevelopment authority at odds

Sept. 04--Lack of financial stability, possible conflict of interest and lack of communication were some of the concerns Connellsville City Council has expressed in a letter it recently sent to the Redevelopment Authority of Connellsville.

The letter was signed by Councilmen Aaron Zolbrod, Brad Geyer, Gregory Ritch and Tom Karpiak and Connellsville Mayor Greg Lincoln,

In the four-page letter, council discussed its concerns with the overall performance of the redevelopment authority and listed some recommendations it would like the authority to follow.

The letter stated council's concern upon learning that the authority acquired a $100,000 grant for research on the feasibility of a hotel on the east side of the city.

"Not only was the RA (redevelopment authority) Board unaware that this grant had been funded or ever sought, no one on City Council was ever notified," the letter stated. "This is disturbing, in as much as council members have worked hard and closely for quite some time with the developers to get the hotel project finally under way on the West Side."

According to the letter, this caused further delay to the West Side hotel project and has caused investors to become nervous. The letter states that at least one investor was reluctant to proceed after there was media coverage of the grant for the feasibility study.

The redevelopment authority was asked by council in the letter to curtail all activity related to a competing hotel on the east side of the city until the West Side hotel has been built and in full operation for at least two years.

"We want to make sure this first hotel is up and operational before we go pursuing a second hotel," said Geyer when contacted by phone on Wednesday. Geyer said council wants to take time to see how the first hotel in the city will work before rushing to build a second. "It's like the old adage says: You have to crawl before you can walk."

A groundbreaking ceremony for the hotel has been scheduled at 10 a.m.Sept. 12 along North First Street.

Ritch said he believes the biggest issue is the lack of communication between city council and the redevelopment authority.

In the letter, council suggested the authority give a report of what grants it is seeking at least a month before submitting the grant applications along with other projects in which the authority plans to take part.

"We would also like to know of available projects or grants that could benefit the city and its residents so council can make recommendations of its own or even participate in the process," the letter states.

Council expressed concern over what it believes is a conflict of interest with Michael Edwards being executive director of the redevelopment authority and the president of the Fayette County Cultural Trust.

"There are times when both entities compete for the same grant dollars," according to the letter. "The RA cannot afford to lose out on one penny of funding."

Melissa Melewsky, media law counsel with the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association, said the state's ethics act defines a conflict of interest existing when a public official uses their office for personal financial gain or financial gain for immediate family or a business with which the public official (or their family) is associated.

"I don't see a conflict of interest unless the redevelopment authority was giving grants to the cultural trust and the public official voted to authorize the grants," Melewsky said. But she added that even if there isn't a conflict of interest under the state ethics act, certain relationships may give the appearance of impropriety or conflict, which many public officials try to avoid.

The letter stated there is no policy with the authority that ensures grants the authority could apply for do not wind up being awarded to the cultural trust.

In the letter, council suggested that no events be co-sponsored by the cultural trust and the redevelopment authority, citing the Lunch and Learn series. The letter states the series does not have programs that further the goals of the city or the redevelopment authority. The letter states Edwards' time planning the series would be better spent searching for grants or attracting industry to the city.

Council criticized the authority's financial stability and the ability to fund two employees, both of whom council said went on unemployment for eight to 12 weeks per year for four straight years because of a lack of administration funds.

"Council thus requests that we be provided a formal written financial plan which ensures that neither of the two employees of the RA will be laid off in 2015 no later than by Oct. 15 of this year so that we can determine whether the Redevelopment Authority can support two full-time employees moving forward into 2015 and beyond," the letter states.

The letter also said the authority's overall productivity is not what the council expects. "Much of that lack of production can be tied to working on other projects not related to the RA," the letter states.

Council suggested in the letter more emphasis needs to be placed on recruiting companies to move their businesses to the city and keeping and possibly expanding existing businesses.

Melewsky said it's not unusual for redevelopment authorities and councils to conflict over policy, but in many cases, the municipality doesn't have power over the authority other than by appointment of members, which is why the concerns and solutions listed in the letter are referred to as suggestions.

Connellsville Solicitor Tim Witt said the city's direct involvement with the authority is limited outside of the mayor appointing board members, the city covering some of the authority's expenses like liability insurance or property insurance and the authority acting as the city's agent for administering Community Development Block Grant funds.

"The redevelopment authority has its own board, employees and finances," Witt said, adding that the authority was authorized to be formed under the Urban Redevelopment Law and a former council would have passed a resolution or ordinance to establish a redevelopment authority. "In that case, the redevelopment authority functions as a separate and independent entity tasked with accomplishing the goal of urban redevelopment under the initial governing statute."

Witt said the authority's only legal duty to council is to account for administration of CDBG funds to ensure that the funds are properly received and spent.

Geyer said he has full confidence the redevelopment authority and the board will come to an agreement.

"Better communication between the city and the redevelopment authority, the better for Connellsville," Geyer said. "Everyone wins."

When contacted by phone, Edwards declined to comment. Karpiak could not be reached for comment.

Tom Duncan, chairman of the redevelopment authority, said he was on vacation when the letter was received. However, he said the authority board would address it at its Sept. 15 meeting.

Zolbrod was contacted by phone and said he would provide a written statement by email. That statement was not available by press time.

Lincoln said he could not comment on the issue at this time.

Mark Hofmann is a staff writer for Trib Total Media. He can be reached at 724-626-3539 or [email protected].

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